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Virginia Raggi, Rome’s first female mayor

We would like to congratulate, Virginia Raggi on her recent win in Rome’s mayoral race. Raggi is not only Rome’s first female mayor, but at age 37, she is also the youngest to ever hold the Rome’s mayoral office.

In addition to being born in Rome, Mayor Raggi also grew up and attended school, college and law school in Rome, where she was a practicing human rights lawyer. Her love of technology led her to also focus on intellectual property and copyright law before she became interested in local politics.

In 2011, Ms. Raggi joined the 5 Star Movement (M5S), a protest party that was founded in 2009 by blogger and comedian Beppe Grillo. Raggi’s victory was one of 19 wins across Italy for the party suggesting that the Italian people are looking for change.

Although Mayor Raggi’s experience is limited to serving on Rome’s City Council for a few years, her promises to clean up the city helped seal her victory. During her time on City Council she actively followed school committees, social policy, culture, and youth policies and developed a desire to bring legality and transparency to Rome, known for its rampant corruption. Mayor Raggi has also vowed to tackle issues including but not limited to public transport, housing, recycling and waste management.

Raggi acknowledges the profound change that her election will bring to Italian women, but remains grounded in the reality that Italy has a long way to go before it attains gender equality.